


Past strength

by karmicMayhem



Series: Honey-sweet [2]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, College AU, Cute, Fluffy, Gen, mentioned past abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-09
Updated: 2018-06-09
Packaged: 2019-05-19 23:08:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14882972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karmicMayhem/pseuds/karmicMayhem
Summary: Patton's uncle wants him to visit for some reason after all this time. Will Patton go? And what do his friends think of this?





	Past strength

 

Virgil shot out of bed as he heard a crash come from the kitchen. He opened his door and heard the muffled swearing that accompanied it. It sounded like… _Patton?_   What?

 

Turning to look at his clock, he was surprised to see that it was only a little after four in the morning. What was Patton doing up? He normally went to sleep before _any_ of them. He liked to be up the earliest so he could make breakfast for the others before they got up.

 

Making his way down the hallway, he peered around the doorway leading to the kitchen. Virgil blinked in shock at the sight that greeted him.

 

Sitting on the counter was Patton, his legs waving back and forth carelessly over the edge as he sipped from a bottle of vodka. He was dressed in light blue pajamas with little hearts decorating them. Broken glass was scattered on the floor beneath him, and Virgil was willing to bet it was the origin of the sound that woke him up.

 

“Pat…?” he cautiously asked, finally getting the other’s attention.

 

Patton pulled the bottle away from his mouth in shock as he looked up at Virgil. “O-oh! Hey, Kiddo! Didn’t see you there.” he laughed nervously.

 

“Why are you drinking at four in the morning, Pat?” Virgil asked. “Also, why are you drinking straight from the bottle? That’s kinda gross.”

 

“Oh.” Patton said, looking down on the broken glass. “I grabbed one of Ro’s shot glasses, but I dropped it.” he shrugged. “So I climbed up here, cause I figured it was safer than trying to walk through the glass.”

 

Virgil tilted his head in thought at that. “Ah. Well, that explains the broken glass, then.” Virgil furrowed his eyebrows as he watched the other. “But that doesn’t explain why you’re drinking right now to begin with. Did something happen?”

 

Patton worried his lip between his teeth for a moment before sighing. “Oh no, I’m being an awful role model right now, aren’t I?”

 

Virgil huffed an amused laugh at that. “Pat, you’re only a few months older than me.”

 

“I know, but I’m still supposed to be setting a good example, Kiddo.” Patton thoughtlessly took another sip from the bottle, his face screwing up slightly at the taste.

 

“I’m still worried about you.” Virgil said while reaching for the dustpan to sweep the shattered glass up.

 

Patton frowned. “I hate when people worry about me.” he said absently. “I’m not used to it.”

 

Virgil’s head whipped back up to look at him in concern. He opened his mouth to say something, when he heard footsteps heading towards them. He turned and watched as Logan and Roman walked in, both obviously exhausted.

 

“What’s with all the noise?” Roman asked, yawning and rubbing at his eyes. He blinked a few times before eyeing the bottle in Patton’s grasp in confusion. “Is... that my vodka?” he asked, concerned.

 

“Patton, may I inquire as to why you’re drinking at this hour? And directly from the bottle, no less?” Logan asked as he did his best to stifle a yawn of his own. His oversized blue flannel pajamas were sagging almost completely off of one shoulder, effectively ruining the professional tone he had been attempting to take.

 

“Well I grabbed one of Ro’s shot glasses, but I dropped it.” Patton said sheepishly. “Sorry, Ro.”

 

Roman blinked in surprise. “Oh, it’s fine, Padre. They’re pretty cheap to replace.” He said as he carefully moved his foot back from almost stepping on a piece that Virgil was in the process of sweeping up.

 

“I believe you are avoiding the main question here, Patton.” Logan said, watching him carefully as he pushed his glasses up.

 

Patton only hummed thoughtfully as he watched Virgil empty the broken glass from the dustpan into the trash. He took another sip from the bottle before speaking casually, “You know, growing up I really related to Cinderella and Snow White. They had to clean a lot too, and both of them had guardians that didn’t treat them nicely. I saw a lot of myself in them, so I rewatched their movies as often as I could get away with.” There was a faintly nostalgic look in his eye as he spoke.

 

Virgil looked at the other two, sharing looks of confusion at the seeming non sequitur. “Pat, what…?” he asked after turning back to look at the other. He was getting growingly concerned at the far away look on Patton’s face.

 

“I really loved their animal companions too,” he carried on, not acknowledging their confusion, “especially the birds. I wanted one of my own, to just _be there_ while I worked to keep me company while I did chores and stuff.” he laughed dryly, no real humor in his tone. “I wanted a pet, but I really just wanted to not be alone, honestly. Not that I realised it at the time.” His smile was bitter as he pulled his legs up onto the counter and crossed them. “One day, though, I heard a sound as something hit the window. When I went outside to check, I found a little bluebird.”

 

“The bird had damaged her wing when she hit the window, so I nursed her back to health. I bought a cage for her and took her to the vet and everything. When she was healed enough to fly away, she refused to leave.” He let out an unnerving high-pitched giggle into the bottle as he drank more. “No matter how long I left the cage open outside, she stayed where she was and tweeted happily back to me. You can imagine how happy it made me, to have a pet finally, right?” he set the bottle down and leaned back on his arms as he reminisced. “She was the sweetest little thing. I named her Lola and she sang for me when I was sad or exhausted. Sometimes I would let her out to fly around my room and she would perch on my shoulder and nuzzle into my neck. I had her for about a year.” His last sentence was spoken absently to the ceiling.

 

Virgil was almost terrified to ask, but it felt like he had to. “What... happened to her?”

 

Patton was silent for a moment before looking down at them. The normal light that shone in his eyes was completely gone. There was a smile on his face but it was _wrong_ somehow. There wasn’t any emotion contained in it, positive _or_ negative. No life.

 

“When I came home from school one day, she wasn’t in her cage anymore. When I started looking for her around the house, I found her in the trash can. Her neck was snapped.” Patton’s voice matched the emptiness of his expression as he spoke.

 

“My uncle killed her.”

 

Virgil felt like he was going to be sick. And from the shaky breathing he heard from the other two behind him, they weren’t faring much better. “ _What the fuck_?” he asked, awful emotions he couldn’t identify were rising in his stomach. “ _Why_?”

 

Patton blinked tiredly before speaking, “He claimed that her chirping was getting on his nerves. He was pretty drunk at the time, I think. I don’t know. I took her out of the trash can and gave her a proper burial in a shoebox I filled with nice and soft things I knitted. I wanted her to be comfortable, you know?” He paused to take a deep pull from the bottle. “I decided it was better not to have another pet after that. I think I was about eleven years old at the time.”

 

After a tense silence, Logan was the first to speak up. “Is the memory of that the reason you’re drinking currently, then?” he ventured cautiously.

 

“I’m trying to remember...” Patton said as he let his legs dangle over the edge again, “I’m trying to remember all of the reasons that it’s better that I never go back there.”

 

“You mean your uncle’s house?” Roman questioned incredulously. “Why the hell would you ever want to go back _near_ that monster?”

 

Patton wordlessly gestured to his phone that sat on the counter near him. “He texted me a few hours ago. He wants me to stop by his house this weekend if I’m not ‘dead in a ditch’ like he thinks I might be. Apparently he has something to give me.”

 

“Is there anything he could give you that would be worth seeing him again?” Logan asked, eyeing him carefully.

 

Sighing, Patton shrugged. “The thing is, that it’s probably something that belonged to my parents. He wouldn’t give me something of his, _that’s_ for sure.” he frowned as the bitter words left his tongue.

 

“Pat, maybe you should stop drinking for now? We can talk about everything more in the morning, but I think you need sleep.” Virgil said, slowly reaching to take the vodka from Patton, as though he thought the other would snatch it back if he moved too quickly.

 

Patton handed it to him without arguing. “Fine. Honestly, it tastes like fingernail polish remover anyway. Actually, I take it back. Fingernail polish remover tastes better. I was only drinking it so that I didn’t have to be sober to deal with this.” he admitted tiredly.

 

“Why... do you know what fingernail polish remover tastes like?” Roman asked.

 

Patton hummed thoughtfully before looking down at him. “That day on the roof wasn’t exactly my first attempt at dying, Kiddo.” he said softly.

 

“Holy shit.” Virgil said, his eyes widening in horror. “You _drank_ fingernail polish remover?”

 

Patton nodded. “Yeah. It didn’t kill me though. You know, obviously _._ I don’t think I drank enough for that. I _did_ have awful stomach pains for _days_ after, though.” Patton grimaced at the memory. “Wouldn’t recommend it.” With that, he hopped off the counter, still oddly graceful for having had as much vodka as he did.

 

“Can I hug you, Pat? Please?” Virgil asked, obviously overwhelmed with everything he just heard.

 

Patton smiled tiredly. “Of course, Kiddo.” he said. “Sorry for dumping all of this on you guys. I normally wouldn’t, but I guess I forgot how much I lose my filter when I drink.”

 

Virgil wrapped him up in a hug, still teary-eyed from his earlier story. “It’s okay, Pat. _Really_. I’m glad you told us. You don’t have to deal with everything alone, remember?”

 

“Yeah, Padre, we’re here for you!” Roman exclaimed before joining the hug. He ruffled Virgil and Patton’s hair as he did so, ignoring Virgil’s protests.

 

Logan softly cleared his throat to get their attention. “Precisely, Patton. Just as you help us with our…um, _issues_ , we would also like to be there for you to assist you with yours.” He pushed his glasses up, trying not to blush at the warm looks he was receiving. Reluctantly caving when Virgil gestured him forward, he joined the hug, making sure Patton was in his arms. He would deny it if asked, but his story made him feel _furiously_ protective towards Patton. And he knew Virgil and Roman felt the same.

 

“Thanks guys.” Patton sniffed, doing his best to hold back tears. “You don’t know how much it means to me that you guys are here for me like this. It’s… it’s really nice.” He made sure to hug everyone back tightly. “I love you all _so much_.” Tears finally began to spill down his cheeks as he tried to furiously scrub them away.

 

He shyly looked up at them after a few moments. “Can… can we do the thing where we all sleep on the floor together? Please? I think I need it tonight, if that’s okay.”

 

“Of course, Patton.” Logan responded kindly. “However, please drink a few cups of water before you go to sleep. Your body will need to to replenish the water inside of you, and it could save you an awful headache.”

 

Patton grinned at him. “Thanks Lo, I will. How about I grab some water while you guys set the blankets up?”

 

Logan nodded and walked to the living room while Roman gave Patton a thumbs up and followed Logan out.

 

“Here’s some water.”

 

Patton blinked in surprise and turned to look at Virgil, who was offering him a glass. He took the water from him gently. “Thanks, Kiddo.” he said before beginning to drink quickly, not realising how thirsty he had been.

 

“If you want,” Virgil offered, his voice soft, “we can talk about everything tomorrow while we bake cookies? I know that usually calms you down.”

 

Quickly finishing the last of his water, Patton set the cup down onto the counter and wordlessly approached Virgil, swiftly wrapping him up into a firm hug. “I’m so lucky to know you.” he whispered.

 

Virgil chuckled. “I think you have it backwards there, Pat.”

 

“No.” Patton said with a small smile. “I have it exactly right.” He pulled back from the hug and led the other by their joined hands, smiling as he noticed that Virgil wore his bracelet to sleep in. “C’mon, let’s join Lo and Ro. They’re probably waiting for us by now.”

 

With that, they joined their friends to get some much needed sleep.

 

Patton smiled as he stared up at the ceiling almost an hour later, as the others slept beside him

 

 _I’m so lucky_ , he thought, _to have such wonderful friends._

 

\--------------------------

 

Patton sighed. Today was the day he was going to his uncle’s house. They eventually agreed that, while Patton should go, he shouldn’t go alone. However, none of them wanted to stay home while he went.

 

In the end, they decided that _all_ of them should go. Patton was happy to get the chance to show them around his old home town, but he was nervous about them meeting his uncle. He didn’t exactly have high hopes that this would go well, knowing his uncle, but they were adamant about going with him. He sighed lightly and nibbled at his toast.

 

“You okay, Pat?” Virgil asked, looking mildly concerned as he spooned some oatmeal into a bowl for himself.

 

Patton blinked out of his thoughts and smiled up at Virgil. “I’m fine, Kiddo. Just a little nervous about today is all.” He began to drum his fingers against the table absentmindedly.

 

“That’s rather understandable.” Logan commented, pouring himself some coffee before walking over to join them at the table. “It sounds as though your uncle is not someone that anyone would particularly enjoy visiting. I certainly wouldn’t blame you for being hesitant to see him again.”

 

“I wish I could say you were wrong, Lo.” Patton admitted tiredly. “Honestly I wish I could put this off. I’d almost rather never see him again, but…”

 

“If I have my way, the only thing that villain will be seeing is my fist!” Roman called from the couch.

 

“Now, Roman,” Patton scolded, turning to look at him with a stern frown, “I agreed to let you all come on the trip on the condition that no one tries to fight my uncle. That means verbally _and_ physically.”

 

Virgil smirked mischievously. “What, not even _one_ punch? I promise he’ll only be a _little_ unconscious after.”

 

“I can make it look like he tripped and fell.” Logan threw in casually after taking a sip of coffee. “We certainly wouldn’t get in trouble for it.” He smiled across the table at Virgil who returned it with a small laugh.

 

“ _No one_ is going to be fighting my uncle.” Patton reiterated raising his hands up in a halting motion. “I know it might be tempting, but I _really_ don’t want any conflict from this.”

 

“Okay, okay. No fighting your uncle, we got it, Pat.” Virgil soothed gently. “We won’t start anything, promise. I know this’ll be stressful enough as it is for you.”

 

Patton exhaled and relaxed into his seat. “You’re not exactly wrong there, Virge. I’ll be okay, though. We should stop by the shelter after to play with the puppies.” he grinned at the thought of getting to play with all the cute excitable puppies there.

 

“Sounds fun, Pat.” Virgil responded. “I think I’ll stay on the cat side though. Cats like me more and the dog area always smells bad.” he wrinkled his nose at the memory.

 

“I agree with Virgil in this instance.” Logan said. “I find cats to be much more pleasant than dogs. So I will be joining him in remaining in the cat section.” He stood to pour himself more coffee before coming back to the table slowly, obviously tired still.

 

Roman made his way over and sat directly onto Patton’s lap as he waved his arm dramatically. “It seems that _I_ will have to be the one that keeps our _lovely_ Patton company. Dogs are _clearly_ superior. And Patton here is the only other one out of us that isn’t too blind to see it.”

 

“Actually,” Patton said, laughter in his voice at Roman’s antics, “I like cats and dogs equally. I think they’re both great!”

 

Roman gasped dramatically, putting a hand to his chest as he leaned away from Patton. “Betrayal!” he cried out, “I thought you were on my side on this, but instead I have been _stabbed_ in the back by one of my most _trusted_ -”

 

“Roman, it’s too early in the morning for your drama.” Virgil cut in dryly with a small smirk. “Save it for theater.”

 

Pausing his theatrics, Roman stuck his tongue out at Virgil, still hanging off of Patton. “Just because you don’t appreciate _art_ when you see it-”

 

“I hardly think that you yelling about animals so early counts as any form of art, Roman.” Logan interrupted him this time, raising an eyebrow.

 

Roman grinned in response. “I was talking about me.” he preened at Logan’s subsequent groaning.

 

“ _Please_ , Princey.” Virgil teased, “If anything, you’re the art that a child makes and the parents put it on the fridge just to be nice.”

 

Roman’s gasp was _far_ more offended this time. Patton laughed and wrapped his arms around Roman, tucking him closer to his chest. “Don’t worry, kiddo.” he said as he tried to get his giggles under control. “All art is good art. Even fridge art!”

 

“That doesn’t exactly make me feel much better, Padre.” Roman pouted. He still relaxed into Patton’s grip, despite his complaining.

 

Patton chuckled and patted the top of Roman’s head soothingly. “So is everyone about ready to go?” he asked.

 

Logan downed the rest of his coffee quickly before nodding. “I’m ready. I’ll be driving, correct?”

 

“Yeah.” Patton agreed. “As long as you don’t mind?” he tilted his head inquiringly.

 

“I’m fine with it. I much prefer being the one to drive than to let _Roman_ drive again.” Logan spoke as he adjusted his glasses, a small mischievous smirk twitching at his lips.

 

Roman threw his hands up dramatically, “What?” he demanded. “Is it Insult Roman Day or something?”

 

“Well, sweetie, you _do_ tend to drive a bit…” Patton trailed off uncertainty.

 

“You drive like the car is on fire and the only way to put it out is to drive as fast as possible without stopping.” Virgil supplied for him bluntly. “I’m surprised that you’ve never gotten pulled over for the way you drive. It’s _baffling_.”

 

Roman’s retort was cut off by the scrape of Logan’s chair as it was pushed back. “Are the rest of you ready to go as well?” the glasses clad male asked.

 

Standing gently from Patton’s lap, Roman nodded. “I’m ready!”

 

Virgil nodded. “Yeah, I’m good too.” he looked over at Patton and smiled slightly. “Thanks for breakfast by the way, Pat. It was good.”

 

“Patton’s cooking is _always_ wonderful!” Roman declared loudly, throwing an arm around Patton’s shoulders.

 

“Agreed. Thank you for breakfast, Patton. It was appreciated.” Logan said.

 

Patton felt a grin begin to overtake his face. “Awww, thanks, guys! I’m just happy that you all liked it.” He began to gather up the dishes to put in the sink for when they got back, humming happily to himself.

 

After carefully setting the last plate down, he made his way over to the front door where the others were standing. Grabbing his cardigan from where it had been tossed over the chair to his left, he looked up at them with a nervous smile before finally speaking. “Okay, let’s go.”

 

With that, they made their way out of the apartment and towards Logan’s car. Patton climbed into the car and looked to his left to watch Logan getting in. He heard Virgil and Roman bickering about something already as they both got into the back. Patton clicked his seatbelt closed as Logan started the car up.

 

“Is everyone all buckled up?” Patton asked, loud enough to be heard over the bickering.

 

“Princey isn’t!” Virgil called back.

 

Roman made a face at him. “Are you really _tattling_ on me right now?” he demanded.

 

“Now, Kiddo,” Patton began sternly, “ you know Virgil just wants you to be safe. And I do too. You need to wear your seatbelt for your own safety.”

 

“It wrinkles my clothes, though.” he pouted as he clicked it into place.

 

“It’s better for your clothes to get new wrinkles than your _spine_ if there is some form of accident, Roman.” Logan said as he watched him from the rearview mirror with a raised eyebrow.  

 

Roman sighed dramatically. “Fine, but I get to pick the music we listen to.”

 

Virgil rolled his eyes as Logan started the car up and began driving. “You say that like you ever let any of the rest of us pick the music anyway.” he grumbled.

 

Patton did his best to stay awake to listen to what everyone was saying, but his recent lack of sleep was beginning to catch up to him. He felt his eyelids begin to grow heavy as he blearily watched buildings and trees blur by. Slowly but surely, he fell asleep, soothed by the soft movements of the car.

 

“-atton.”

 

“ _Patton_.”

 

Patton’s eyes snapped open. He turned to look at Logan who had apparently been trying to get his attention. “Wha…?” he tried to ask through a yawn.

 

“I believe we have arrived. If the address you gave me last night was correct, that is.”

 

Patton looked up at the old brown house in front of him. The lawn was overgrown and the front screen door was close to falling off its hinges. The paint on the fence was cracked and chipped in most places and he couldn’t really say he was surprised. He opened the door and got out, watching the others do the same.

 

“Yeah, this is the right place.” Patton confirmed with a sigh before stretching. “Looks like this place fell apart without me here to do all of the maintenance.”

 

From the corner of his eye, he could see Virgil look over in concern at his dark tone. He frowned slightly before shrugging at the other. “Sorry,” he said, “I think I’m still just a bit bitter.”

 

“Can’t say I blame you, Padre.” Roman said, walking around the side of the car to them.

 

“Agreed.” Logan said as he rested a gentle hand on Patton’s shoulder. “I suggest we keep this visit short so that we may visit the shelter with optimal time to visit the animals.”

 

Patton could hear clearly what he was really saying, though. _Let’s hurry so we aren’t here at the place that upsets you for too long._

 

Grinning as he saw Roman and Virgil nod in agreement, Patton drew his shoulders back in preparation for what was about to happen. “I love you guys.” he said as he put his cardigan on and let the soft texture of it soothe him. After taking a deep breath, he led the way to the front door and pulled the screen door open, knocking loudly enough to be heard on the door behind it.

 

With practised ease he had forgotten he possessed, Patton jumped back from the door just in time as it swung open, narrowly dodging it.

 

“Who’s there?” a voice demanded from the doorway.

 

Patton smiled pleasantly up at his uncle. He hadn’t changed much from when he last saw him, still wearing old and worn out clothes and still wearing the same displeased expression on his face.

 

“Hey, Uncle!” Patton greeted him cheerfully.

 

The man peered down at him through squinted eyes. “Oh, it’s you, Kid. I guess you’re still alive then.”

 

Patton only smiled wider. “Yep! Still alive, here. So,” he paused and blinked up at the other, “what was it that you wanted to give me?”

 

His uncle frowned as he surveyed everyone else present. “And who are they?” he asked gruffly. “I don’t remember saying you could bring anyone.”

 

“Oh, they’re just my friends.” Patton laughed lightly. “I wanted to show them my old hometown, so I figured they might as well tag along for this so I can show them around after.” he lied smoothly, ignoring the obvious side eye he was getting from Virgil.

 

The man spent a few more seconds watching them through narrowed eyes. “Fine then.” he said as he stepped backwards into the house. “C’mon in, brat. I’ll go get ‘em.”

 

“Oh, Uncle?” Patton cut in before the man could walk away.

 

“What?” his uncle asked without bothering to turn around.   

 

Patton kept his tone light as he spoke, “Could I show my friends my old room while I’m still here? If it’s not too much trouble, that is.”

 

“Yeah, go ahead. I haven’t used the room for anything anyway. It’s been peaceful without your loud music blaring from there all the time. Just make sure your… _friends_ don’t touch anything they shouldn’t.”

 

With a nod and a stiff smile, Patton wordlessly led his friends to his room. Climbing the stairs and opening the old creaky door to his room, he smiled sadly at the small space that was one of his few places to escape growing up. It was just about as barren and empty as is had always been. He walked in and let everyone file in before he shut the door quietly behind them.

 

“You grew up in the attic?” Roman asked quietly.

 

Finally dropping his painted on smile, Patton just nodded. “It’s not that bad, really. I kinda liked being up here.” he grimaced slightly. “Y’know… after I got over my fear of monsters and stuff.”

 

“What _I_ want to know,” Virgil cut in with a growing mischievous smirk, “is what kind of music you used to blare?”

 

“Oh, _please_ tell me you didn’t have an emo phase.” Roman mock-teased, a grin taking over his face slowly. “One Dark Knightmare is _more_ than enough for this group.”

 

Patton felt his face slowly turning red. “It… was a long time ago.” he laughed haltingly before freezing, remembering something. Wordlessly, he crossed the room to stand beside the bed before quickly pushing it to the side.

 

“Um, Patton?” Logan asked. “What exactly are you doing?” he shifted in place uncertainty as he shared a look with the other two who seemed similarly confused.

 

Patton crouched down to the creaky floorboards and reached to the underside of the bed and pulled out a small screwdriver. “Well, you see…” he trailed off as he jammed the screwdriver into one of the loose floorboards and pried it open. “I never really trusted that my stuff was safe here, so I used this loose floorboard to store stuff.” With that, he pulled a light blue box out of the floor cavity before setting it aside and replacing the board.

 

He quickly pushed the bed back into its original place, grabbing the box and perching on the side of the bed. He smiled sadly up at them before speaking again, “I usually used it to store granola bars and stuff, so I’d have food if Uncle was feeling particularly… _unpleasant_.” he frowned as he watched them all tense up at his words. Quickly continuing on before any of them could decide to go against their promise not to fight his uncle, he spoke quietly, “The thing is, when I left I didn’t exactly have enough room to bring all my stuff to college with me. And I was pretty sure that my uncle would go through my room the second I left to see if I left anything valuable behind that he could sell. So I put the things that I wanted to keep safe in this box in case I was ever able to come back.”

 

The three of them wore similarly impressed expressions as they looked at Patton in near awe. They all knew Patton was more intelligent than he usually let on but this was…

 

“ _Brilliant_.” Logan praised with a growing smile. “And that’s the real reason you asked for us to be let in here, isn’t it?” His smile grew as Patton nodded.

 

“I’m impressed, Pat.” Virgil said as he walked over and set his hand gently on Patton’s shoulder. “That took a lot of foreplanning. Soooo, what’s in it?”

 

Patton laughed with a slight tinge of fear, “Well, I’m really hoping the answer isn’t ‘spiders’, seeing as it’s been a while. But, other than that…” he gently removed the top from the box, peering at the contents. He quickly sighed in relief as no spiders were immediately seen.

 

Patton gently pulled out a medium sized stuffed bunny and placed it on the bed. Then he carefully tilted the box so that they could see inside. Sitting there was a delicate golden necklace with a heart shaped pendant and a picture frame with a picture of two parents and a small child inside, all smiling happily.

 

“I like your bunny.” Virgil said with a small smile. “It’s cute.”

 

Patton returned the smile. “Thanks, Kiddo. I’ve had it since I was really little.” he bit his cheek as he considered his next words. “The thing is, Uncle hated it. He said that ‘growing boys don’t need stuffed animals’ and that I needed to toughen up.” Hugging the bunny to his chest tightly, he continued, “He told me to get rid of it. So I learned how to hide things and I let him think I listened to him. I just couldn’t get rid of it, my parents got it for me.”    

 

Virgil felt his chest tighten at the quietly defeated tone in Patton’s voice. As he watched Patton hold the bunny close to himself, Virgil was struck with the mental image of Patton at a younger age, doing much the same. Patton likely had very few things to turn to for any sort of comfort growing up, and Virgil could see all too clearly how practiced the motion was for him, to hold the stuffed animal tightly to his chest as he curled up to make himself seem as small as possible. Unable (and unwilling) to stop himself, Virgil made his way forward and sat on the bed next to Patton, pulling him into a firm hug.

 

Patton blinked in surprise before leaning into the hug. “Thanks, Kiddo.” he said quietly. “You always seem to know when I need a hug.” He carefully blinked the water gathering in his eyes away, not wanting to cry while they were still here.

 

“If I may ask,” Logan began softly, “did the necklace in the box belong to your mother?”

 

“...Yeah.” Patton confirmed after a moment of silence with a small nod. “She wore it all the time. I think it was an anniversary present from my dad.” He closed his eyes tiredly, and just let his head rest against Virgil’s chest for the moment. “When I was younger, after the… _accident_ , they let me go home to pack my stuff up. When I saw the people packing up my parents stuff and taking it away, I knew I couldn’t let them take it too. I grabbed the little photo of us all together from my dad’s desk and I grabbed my mom’s necklace from her jewelry box and packed them up with my stuff when no one was looking.” He hugged the bunny tighter to his chest, letting the softness of its fur soothe him.

 

Roman and Logan exchanged a look before making their way over to the pair. Logan sat on the bed on the other side of Patton and began gently running his hand through his hair, knowing that Patton always found the motion calming. Roman sat in front of Patton and planted a gentle kiss to the top of his head.

 

Patton giggled at the attention. He felt almost guilty to be the one on the receiving end of all the comfort for once, but he knew there was no point in arguing. None of them would let him get away with thinking he wasn’t worthy of it for very long.

 

“HEY, BRAT! GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE, I FOUND IT!”

 

Everyone besides Patton jumped at the sudden yell from downstairs. Patton, already being used to it, just sighed. He carefully set the bunny back in the box and closed the lid before standing up and stretching slightly.

 

“Pat? Why does he keep calling you ‘kid’ and ‘brat’ instead of your name?” Virgil asked, confusion and irritation coloring his tone.

 

Patton blinked before tucking the box under one arm. “Oh, that’s how it’s always been. Neither of us has really ever bothered with each other’s names. I just call him ‘Uncle’, after all.” he shrugged casually.

 

“...Okay, then.” Virgil responded, unsure of what else to say to that.

 

Exhaling slowly, Patton looked around his old room once more before opening his door and stepping out. The others filed out behind him quietly, and followed him down the stairs and to the living where his uncle was waiting for him.

 

“Here.” The man said as he tossed a small object at Patton.

 

Deftly catching it, Patton looked at the object in interest. It was a small black jewelry box. He gently handed the shoebox under his arm to Logan to hold while he opened the small box in his grasp. His eyes widened at what he saw inside.

 

“Are these…” he trailed off, still slightly shocked.

 

“Your parent’s wedding rings, yeah.” his uncle confirmed gruffly.

 

Patton’s eyes were trained on the two simple gold bands in front of him. Engraved on the inside of the larger one was the words ‘A gift from my loving wife’ and in the smaller one was the words ‘A gift from my loving husband’. Patton smiled sadly. His parents had always been madly in love with each other and they _loved_ sappy things like this. They were probably where he got it from, now that he thought about it.

 

“Legally I was supposed to give it to you when you turned eighteen, but... you know.” He shrugged uncaringly.

 

Patton felt his mouth twist bitterly. Of course. It had been years since he was supposed to have gotten it, and his uncle only thought to give it to him _now_. He quickly pasted his normal smile back on as he closed the box.

 

“And what the fuck is _that_ look for?” his uncle snapped.

 

Patton’s gaze whipped up. Had he seen-? No, his uncle wasn’t looking at him, and was instead looking between Virgil and Roman.

 

“Who are either of you to be glaring at me in my own home?” he demanded.

 

Looking at his friends, Patton spoke softly, “Guys… it’s fine. He’s not worth getting angry over.”

 

“Oh, I’m not _worth_ getting angry over?” The man mimicked with a sneer. “Don’t pretend to be all high and mighty, brat. _I’m_ the one who raised you.”

 

Patton narrowed his eyes slightly and tried in vain to clamp down on his irritation before it grew. “I don’t think that’s true, Uncle.”

 

“ _What_ was that?” his uncle demanded, taking a step forward.

 

“If anything,” Patton said as he looked up to meet his uncle’s gaze head on, “I raised myself.”

 

“You think you can get away with talking to me like that, Kid? The _hell’s_ gotten into you?” He glared down at Patton before turning his glare to his friends. “It’s _these_ little shits, isn’t it? You never would have talked back to me _before_ , so it must be their influence.”

 

Patton tightened his hand around the box in his grasp slightly. “The only thing they did was show me that I’m actually _worth_ something.” He snapped, unable to stay as calm as he wanted. “They think I’m actually worthy of love, which is more than I’ve ever gotten from _you_.”

 

The man chuckled darkly. “Worthy? You?” he shook his head. “You’re exactly as _worthless_ as you’ve always been, brat. Just because you seem to have grown a fucking _spine_ for once doesn’t mean you aren’t just as weak as you’ve always been.”

 

“You’re such a fucking asshole.” Virgil’s voice cut in suddenly, hatred and anger coating his words.

 

The man’s hand shot out and grabbed the front of Virgil’s shirt, dragging him forward before anyone could react. “You think you can talk to me that way, punk?” he growled, tightening his grip.

 

Virgil’s eyes widened in fear before closing them tightly, expecting a punch. Suddenly, though, the hand on his shirt disappeared with what sounded like a loud grunt of _pain_. He opened his eyes in enough time to see Patton’s knee lowering from his uncle’s groin as the man doubled over in agony. Had he-? Virgil looked at the other two who had similarly shocked looks on their faces.

 

Before anyone else had time to move, Patton twisted around in place and elbowed the man hard in the face, a sickening _crack_ coming from his nose as he fell backwards.

 

There was a shockingly _cold_ look on Patton’s face as he looked down at his uncle, who was now clutching his bleeding nose on the ground.

 

“You aren’t allowed to touch my friends.” Patton stated with a deadly sort of calm.

 

“You fucking _psycho_.” the man spat out. “I should call the police and have them arrest you _and_ your friends for assault.”

 

Patton only smiled grimly. “Go ahead. I’m sure they’d _love_ to hear about how you treated the child in your care all of these years. How you used the money you got from the government to raise me on alcohol and prostitutes instead of ever actually using it to buy me things like _food_ and _clothing_. How you used to leave me _alone_ in this house for _weeks_ on end before I was even twelve years old as you disappeared to who _knows_ where.”

 

His uncle bared his teeth up at him. “I should have just let the orphanage have you, instead of taking you in myself.”

 

Staring down his nose at the man, Patton spoke quietly. “Sometimes I wish you _would_ have.” With that, Patton looked at his friends who were all standing stock still in shock. “Let’s go.” he said tiredly.

 

Still in a state of disbelief, his friends only nodded before making their way to the door. Patton looked down at his uncle once more before speaking calmly, “Thank you for giving me their rings, Uncle. Please do not contact me again.” He turned and walked out of the front door, leaving his scowling uncle behind.

 

Patton was silent as they all got into the car. He pinched the bridge of his nose lightly. “I think I gave myself some sort of hate-headache from that.” he muttered. “Lo?” he asked after a moment.

 

“Yes, Patton?” Logan responded quickly.

 

“Did you see a park on your way here? It’s about two blocks from here.”

 

Logan blinked. “Yes, I saw it. Would you like to go there?”

 

Patton nodded. “Please. If it’s not too much trouble, that is.”

 

“Of course not, Patton.” Logan responded soothingly before starting the car up and beginning to drive. The drive was tense, no one really knowing what to say after everything that happened. Patton looked up as they pulled into the park, silently waiting until the car had stopped to get out.

 

The others followed him as he made his way up the grassy hill, walking until he got to a large oak tree. He sat down beneath it and watched his friends sit down in front of him. After a moment, he let out a long exhale, letting the tension that had been pent up inside him for most of the day leave him.

 

“When I was younger,” he began as he absently stared at a little white flower beside him, “I would come here when things got too stressful for me at home. I’ve honestly spent more than one night in this tree when Uncle was feeling particularly mean. So it just seemed kinda fitting to come back here after today, you know?”

 

Virgil shared a look with Logan and Roman before turning back to Patton. “Do you want to talk about it, Pat? It’s fine if you don’t want to, but…” he trailed off, unsure of what to say. “I’m… sorry that I called him an asshole even though you told us not to fight with him.” he muttered, embarrassed.

 

“Aw, it’s okay, Kiddo.” Patton replied, his gaze soft. “Honestly I can’t really say I blame you. If someone had been insulting one of you, I would have stepped in too.”

 

Roman seemed to be doing his best not to bounce in place as he spoke, “So, can we talk about how you vanquished the villain? Cause it was really cool. But I understand if you wish to wait.”

 

Patton smiled slightly at Roman. “What part do you want to talk about, Ro?” he asked, knowing it would make Roman happy.

 

“Where did you learn to fight like that?” he asked, his grin growing. “I never would have thought that you could take a man down that quickly, but it seems I was _sorely_ mistaken, Padre.”

 

“Oh, I used to take a lot of self defence classes growing up.” Patton said with a shrug. “I figured I’d need them, cause I had to walk back and forth from the jobs I worked, school, and the store all the time at random hours of the day. It just seemed like I should be prepared in case I was ever robbed while walking from place to place.”

 

Logan spoke up suddenly, “I _will_ admit that seeing you break his nose like that was rather satisfying.” A small smirk grew on his face.

 

Patton gave an embarrassed shrug as his own mischievous smirk grew. “Honestly… I’ve wanted to do that for years now.”

 

“I liked that you started out by kneeing him in the crotch.” Virgil grinned. “I almost wish it was recorded. Also… thanks for doing that when he grabbed me, Pat. I was panicking too much to try and defend myself.” he rubbed the back of his neck shyly.

 

“Of course, Sweetie.” Patton said, as he softly let his hand rest on top of Virgil’s. “I’d never willingly let anything bad happen to you guys.”

 

Patton let the back of his head rest against the tree. Closing his eyes to enjoy the breeze and the shade, he just let the silence be for a few minutes.

 

“Are you still awake, Padre?” Roman asked softly.

 

Patton laughed softly and opened his eyes. “Yeah, Ro. I’m up.” He yawned suddenly, “Maybe not for long though.” He smiled at him as he pushed his glasses up.

 

“Did you want to stay here for longer?” Roman carefully asked, not wanting to rush him.

 

With a sigh, Patton shook his head. “No… no we’d better leave soon. I really might be tempted to doze off here if we stay too long.”

 

Beginning to stand up, Logan dusted off his knees before asking, “So, do you wish to go home now, then?”

 

Patton beamed at that. _Home_. He really did have a new home now, with people who actually _cared_ about him.

 

 _I’m_ so _lucky_ , he found himself giddily thinking once more.

 

After a moment, Patton furrowed his brows. “Actually,” he began, looking up at his friends, “there’s one other place I want to visit, if you don’t mind.”

 

Logan raised a curious eyebrow. “Oh?” he asked. “Which place?”

 

Patton smiled.

 

\----------------------------------------

 

“Is this the correct building?” Logan asked as he pulled into the parking lot.

 

The building in question was old and light blue. The sign for the shop was printed in looping cursive and the sign in the window promised delicious pastries and cakes. There was an oddly charming aura around the place.

 

“Yep!” Patton chirped as he looked around, observing the now setting sun in the distance. “She usually keeps this place open pretty late, so she _should_ be here right now.”

 

With that, Patton exited the car and quickly made his way to the entrance, too excited to wait for his friends to catch up before he made his way in. He looked around at the display of desserts and the decorations that still hung on the walls after all this time. A strong wave of nostalgia hit him as the smell of freshly baked pastries and coffee wafted over him.

 

“Miss Sylvia?” he called. He heard the front door open behind him as his friends walked in, curiously looking around the place in interest.

 

“Hold on a moment, I’m coming.” A voice called from behind the door that led to the kitchen.

 

The door opened and out stepped an older woman. Her hair was grey and tightly pulled back in a neat bun. Her eyes appeared to be strict and cold but softened considerably once they landed on Patton. Carefully setting the pan of cookies down on the counter, she made her way to the other side of it and silently accepted the hug Patton gave her when she was close enough.

 

“Ah, it’s you, child. So, you’ve come to visit me?” she asked, raising an eyebrow as Patton took a few steps back.

 

Patton nodded. “I have! As long as you don’t mind my company, that is.” a cheeky grin graced his face.

 

“Certainly not.” she responded, shaking her head at the notion. “You are always welcome here. After all, you’re probably the best employee I’ve ever had, young man.”

 

“Does no one actually call Patton by his real name here?” Roman muttered to Virgil who just shrugged in response.

 

The woman’s sharp eyes darted to him. “And who are these gentlemen?” she asked.

 

“Oh!” Patton exclaimed. “Sorry I didn’t introduce you! These are my friends,” he gestured to each of them in turn as he spoke their names, “Virgil, Roman, and Logan.”

 

She peered at them all through narrowed eyes, taking in their expressions and postures. A small smile quirked her lips as her gaze landed on their shared bracelets. She looked back at Patton and nodded minutely.

 

Patton felt most of the nervous tension ease out of him at her silent acception of them. He was so _relieved_ that she approved of them. He beamed back at her happily.

 

“So,” she began, “what brings you back here? I remember specifically when you left that you said you wouldn’t be returning again.”

 

“My uncle called me.” he said, his smile dropping a bit. “He gave me my parents wedding rings, though. So I guess it was worth it.”

 

The woman frowned. “Hmm, Patton, dear?”

 

“Yes, Miss Sylvia?”

 

“Do you remember where I keep the large bags of flour in the storage room?”

 

“Yes?” he said, tilting his head in confusion.

 

“Would you be a dear and move them to the main kitchen for me? I fear my old bones aren’t quite cut out for heavy lifting anymore.”

 

Patton blinked at her. “Um, I’d love to, but…” he glanced at his friends, obviously debating if it was okay to leave them alone with her.

 

She grinned. “It’s alright, dearie, I don’t bite. They’ll be unharmed when you get back.”

 

“Well… alright.” he said uncertainty before walking to the back to do as she asked.

 

“Did you wish to speak with us privately?” Logan asked, cutting through the silence.

 

The lady nods, her face serious. “I did. Tell me something. Do all of you care for Patton?”

 

Virgil exchanged looks with Roman and Logan before turning back to look at her. “Yeah, a lot. We _all_ do.” he confirms resolutely.

 

“Then promise me something.” she spoke, making sure to look them all in the eyes. “Treat him well, but don’t treat him like glass. It might seem like you should handle him that way because of how sweet and selfless he is, but he can handle more than you’d think.”

 

Virgil blinked in surprise at her stern tone before nodding. “I know what you mean, honestly. We actually saw earlier that Pat can be pretty scary when he wants to be.”

 

“Oh?” she asked curiously. “How so?”

 

“He broke his awful uncle’s nose!” Roman grinned as he spoke, sitting down on one of the chairs near him.

 

The lady grinned back as she chuckled. “Good. The bastard deserved it.”

 

Logan tilted his head, “Before today, we were unaware that Patton was capable of fighting.”

 

She looked at him and smiled sadly. “Yes, the boy has always had a gentle soul. I remember there used to be a stray cat that lived outside my shop in the alleyway and he would always put money aside to buy food for it, even when he barely had enough money to feed himself.”

 

Virgil frowned at the thought Patton ever going hungry. “Yeah, that sounds about right.”

 

“But,” the older woman continued, “he’s also the same boy that saved my store from being robbed by taking the thief on _himself_. He might seem to be only sunshine and puppies, but he also has steel in his bones.”

 

Roman’s jaw dropped. “He _what_? _Our_ Patton?”

 

The door to the kitchen reopened and Patton stepped out looking curious. “Our Patton what?” he asked. He looked around the room in bemusement at the shocked looks he was receiving from his friends.

 

“You fucking fought a _robber_? Patton, what the _hell_?” Virgil asked incredulously. 

 

Patton’s face flushed as he turned to look at his old boss. “Miss Sylvia, _please_ tell me you didn’t tell them about that.” he pleaded.

 

Her mouth quirked up into a smile. “I didn’t _tell_ them about it, I’m _telling_ them about it.” she teased lightly.

 

“Was the man armed?” Logan asked, concern coloring his tone.

 

“Only with a knife.” Patton tried to soothe.

 

“ _Only_ a knife?” Virgil demanded, his voice going up a few octaves as he looked Patton over as though checking him for knife wounds.

 

Patton blushed. “I didn’t get hurt, Virge, don’t worry. I didn’t even _really_ fight him… exactly.” he laid a calming hand onto Virgil’s shoulder.

 

“How did you stop him then, Padre?” Roman asked.

 

Patton shifted his weight slightly. “Well, at one point I used to have to carry some weights around with me while I was taking self defence classes so I could workout at home to boost my strength up. I had them in my bookbag one day while I was working here. So when the robber tried to threaten Miss Sylvia, I just…” he trailed off slightly, “threw my bag at him? I don’t know, I kinda panicked. But I guess I threw it hard enough, cause it knocked him out long enough for the police to show up.”

 

“You have quite the arm on you, young man.” she praised with a small smile.

 

Patton grinned back fondly, “I think I got more fit from making bread all day like I used to than I ever did by working out.”

 

Virgil nudged Patton with his elbow teasingly. “Eesh, Pat. I thought you didn’t approve of violence?”

 

Shrugging shyly, Patton responded, “I only approve when it’s in self defence or the defence of someone else.”

 

Logan adjusted his glasses. “I believe that’s a fair assessment.”

 

Patton sighed, “I guess we should head back home now before it gets dark. You guys ready to go?” he asked. He watched as his friends nodded in response. Tilting his head at the older woman, he asked, “Can I hug you one more time before I go, Miss Sylvia?”

 

She nodded and opened her arms for him. He quickly accepted the invitation and darted forward, wrapping her up in a hug. She hugged back just as tightly. She would never admit it, but over the years of watching him grow up, she had started to think of Patton as her own son.

 

“You stay out of trouble, you hear?” she warned as she stepped back from the hug. After a moment, she smiled warmly up at him with a twinkle in her eye. “And you keep those new friends of yours close. This is the most honestly happy I’ve ever seen you, child.”

 

Patton flushed red once more, a smile still firmly planted on his face. “I’ll do that, Miss.” he stared at the ground for a moment before looking up once more with a determined expression. “And thanks for everything you’ve done for me. I’ll miss you.”

 

She chuckled. “I’ll miss you as well. Feel free to stop by anytime if you want to visit.”

 

“I will.” he agreed with a decisive nod of the head. With that, he and his friends waved goodbye as they left the shop, making their way to the car once more.

 

\-------------------------------------

 

Patton opened the door of their apartment and set the shoebox, that now also contained the jewelry box, down on the counter before walking over to the couch and collapsing onto it face first.

 

“Tired, Patton?” Virgil asked, wry humor coloring his tone.

 

“Too much stuff happened today.” Patton groaned. “I feel like sleeping for a _year_ now.”

 

“I have an idea!” Roman declared.

 

“And what’s that, Kiddo?” Patton asked without lifting his head.

 

“You need to sit up first.” Roman replied with his hands on his hips.

 

“ _Noooooo_.” Patton whined, getting up despite his complaints.

 

Roman nodded. “Okay, now…” he sat down in the middle of the couch and motioned for Logan and Virgil to sit on either side of him.

 

After the other two sat down, Roman motioned to their laps. “Now you can lay across us and we can watch a movie. Plus, you’ll be able to nap peacefully like this.”

 

Patton smiled tiredly at him. “Aww, thanks sweetie.” he slowly situated himself across their laps.

 

Virgil grabbed one of the small couch pillows and set it on his lap. “Here, you can lay on this, and I can play with your hair? If you think it’ll help, that is.” he offered kindly.

 

Softly laying his head onto the pillow, Patton hummed in agreement. Virgil began soothingly running a hand through his hair while Roman picked up the remote to start a calm movie up. Logan gently removed Patton’s shoes and softly rubbed the tension out of his feet.

 

“Just relax, Pat.” Virgil cooed at him with a small smile. “Don’t even worry about getting up early tomorrow. We’ll make breakfast for you for a change. You need a few days off, anyway. We'll go to the shelter tomorrow too, since you were too tired to go today.”

 

Patton was too exhausted to argue. Maybe a _few_ days off wouldn’t be the end of the world.

 

“Love you guys.” He mumbled.

 

“We love you as well, Patton.” Logan replied with a fond smile.  

 

Someone gently laid a blanket over him and he smiled. Their love made him feel more warmth than _any_ blanket.

 

He peacefully drifted off to sleep soon after.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I love comments! :D


End file.
